News

VON’s Nova Scotia team has played a key role in a province-wide initiative to strengthen care by supporting continuing care assistants (CCAs) to expand their occupational standards of practice. The result is a more seamless client experience, a stronger home care workforce and a system that is better equipped to meet growing community needs.

This past summer, the Nova Scotia government, supported by KPMG, partnered with VON and other home support agencies to align CCA education with an updated provincial curriculum. The goal was to ensure CCAs across the province share the same core skills, while still allowing employers the flexibility to enhance training beyond that baseline. 

VON’s Annapolis Valley team led a pilot project to test the updated training in real community settings. CCAs participated in hands-on education, applied new skills with clients and shared feedback. This pilot phase, completed in late summer 2025, allowed the team to refine materials, strengthen delivery methods and ensure the education was practical, safe and effective before scaling across the province.

Following the pilot, service delivery supervisors (SDSs) and site managers—registered nurses and licensed practical nurses—became central to the province-wide rollout. “We support our CCAs by orientation, education and going out in the field with them to make sure they’re delivering care safely and professionally,” says Vanessa MacLeod, Manager of the Home Support Program, VON Pictou.

In Pictou County alone, SDSs support more than 130 CCAs, guiding training, validating skills and reinforcing key practices such as infection prevention, privacy and effective communication during home visits.

With enhanced and standardized skills, CCAs can now support medically stable clients with tasks such as medication assistance, basic vital signs, nail care and specimen collection. Clients experience fewer disruptions, more meaningful time with a single care provider and smoother transitions from hospital to home.

Clients continue to be monitored to ensure they receive the right type of care, including nursing visits when needed. During home visits, CCAs have access to electronic documentation tools and checklists through VON Connect, powered by AlayaCare, supporting safe and consistent care and increased collaboration with the nursing team.

By December 2025, more than 700 CCAs across Nova Scotia had completed the training.

Standardized education has allowed CCAs to confidently apply new skills, often increasing job satisfaction and engagement. “It’s been very enjoyable watching the staff eager to learn. It’s rewarding to see them embrace these new standards of practice,” says Dana King-MacCallum, LPN, SDS, VON Pictou. “This initiative allows them to work at their full occupational standards of practice, and now it’s standardized across the province, so we’re all on the same page.”

Interested in a meaningful career in home care? Learn how VON supports our teams through comprehensive education and training while strengthening care across communities at von.ca/careers.

Strategic Plan 2025-30: Excel

The second pillar in VON’s 2025-30 strategic plan is Excel: Bring the best to clients and caregivers by spreading clinical and operational excellence across VON.

The work to standardize and enhance the role of CCA strongly aligns with VON’s strategic focus on clinical and operational excellence, supporting performance, education, innovation and system sustainability. It also lays the groundwork for future collaboration across provinces, as teams explore ways to share learning beyond Nova Scotia.

Visit von.ca/strategic-plan for an interactive visual representation of the strategic plan.